


A Sentinel's Last Watch

by AmayaSorata



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Action, F/F, Post-Finale, Thriller
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-24
Updated: 2015-11-06
Packaged: 2018-03-14 18:36:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3421322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmayaSorata/pseuds/AmayaSorata
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It was happening again. Another person she loved was being taken away from her. Starting over wasn't an option. Not this time. Not without Korra. That's why Asami was willing to do whatever she could to stop it from happening. </p><p>But doing so will mean having to face her own inner demons; demons she'd thought were long dead. And is she really ready to do anything it takes to keep Korra safe, even if it means having to walk on the wrong side of the law? Even if it means throwing away her humanity?</p><p>An in-universe action thriller set approximately five years post finale.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

_Sometime in the year 170 AG..._

It was pure coincidence that Yuzo Noguchi was able to save the man. One of those rare occurrences when the circumstances led him to be in the right place at the just right time.

He rose early. An elaborate breakfast- a bowl of congee, four sticks of youtiao, a small plate of crunchy green beans, and a serving of spicy stir fried pork belly; appropriate for a man of Fire Nation heritage. A long careful shower and shave, appropriate for a surgeon in his early thirties. A drying off with a fluffy white towel and a combing of his thick black hair. A buttoning of his shirt, a step into his slacks, a smoothing of his suit jacket, a tying of his shoes, and another day of routine was underway. All before six fifty-three in the morning, Wednesday.

He was locking the door to his Inner Ring hotel room when he realized that he’d forgotten his timepiece on the bedside table, an expensive but humble looking Seita wristwatch his wife had given him as an anniversary gift two years ago. He quickly walked back inside.

This was the first of the coincidences that would lead to him saving a man’s life later that day. The hotel concierge, who would have knocked on his door a minute after he left was able to catch him, and deliver the telegram of good news that would have him packing a travel bag in a flurry, asking the concierge to arrange tickets for the earliest train out of Ba Sing Se- and an onboard pass for an adjoining ferry towards Republic City.

The concierge asked if he would be checking out.

“Yes I’ll be checking out. Move all my current reservations to a month forward from now if you can, thanks,” he said.

“Understood Mr. Noguchi. Is there anything else I can assist you with?”

He thought for a moment, “I’d like to send a telegram please.”

The concierge took out a pen and a note pad. “Who’s the recipient?”

“Miss Kushala Reddi, Dean of the Northern Outer Ring Hospital.”

“And the message?”

“Tell her I’ll be utilizing my month of parental leave starting from today,” he said.

 

* * *

 *****

* * *

 

All he heard were noises at first, stirring him from his sleep. Random muffled sounds on the far edge of his consciousness. He wanted to ignore them, go back to sleep. But something was telling him to listen. Something instinctual. Visceral. So he listened.

For a while the sounds remained indiscernible. But as his mind awakened, he began to realize. He began registering the familiar changes in pitch, the inflections, the accents. Sounds became words, words turned into sentences. A voice. No, two voices. A conversation.

Where on earth was he?

He felt his eyelids open a fraction. For a moment all he could see was a blur of yellow light. He blinked a few times.

“He’s waking up.” The voice came from his right. A man’s voice. The words came out matter-of-factly.

“It’s about time,” said another voice from somewhere behind him. A woman. There was relief in her voice, but there was a calm confidence behind it as well.

He tried turning his head towards the voices but found it too painful to do so. The best he could do was glance around with his eyes. He was in a small room lying down on a thin mattress, on a frame that was too high up to be a bed. An examination table.

There was a clacking of boots to his left before a woman in a long white coat stepped into view. A doctor. He noted the deep brown skin and the bright blue eyes. She pulled out a penlight from her pocket and pointed it towards his face.

“Focus on a spot on the wall behind me,” she said before passing the light over each of his eyes in a systematic fashion. She nodded. “Good, now use your feet to push against my hands as hard as you can,” she continued. He felt her cold hands touch his bare feet, did what he was asked and pushed his toes towards her. After a moment, she nodded again.

“How is he?” said the male voice, whose figure walked into the right side of his vision. No white coat. Just an expensive looking suit. But the way he spoke suggested that he too was some kind of medical professional.

“Well, his pupil response is normal and he’s not exhibiting any one sided weakness, so I’d say the neurological damage isn’t as bad as we were expecting.”

Those words snapped him wide awake. Damage? What were they talking about?

The guy in the suit must have noticed his distress, because he immediately began explaining things to him.

“Relax. I’m Doctor Noguchi. A surgeon. Right now you’re onboard the MV Jingfei, hailing from Ba Sing Se.”

He nodded.

“This is Doctor Klara, the ship doctor.” Noguchi gestured towards the woman in the white coat. “You’ve been in an accident of some kind. From the extent of your injuries, it looks like it might have been a fairly serious one.”

“Can you remember anything? It’s important that you tell us what happened if you can. There might be more casualties we need to look out for,” Klara said.

For a second he felt a tugging in corner of his mind. He was close to something. He could sense it. But nothing connected, and the thought was gone before he could grasp its contents. He frowned. Something was missing.

“I found you drifting out in the middle of the ocean holding onto some kind of debris. Did your airship crash? Maybe your boat capsized?” Noguchi said.

The ocean. A boat. The tugging was there again, only this time it was ten times as worse.

“Where are we exactly?” He could see that the two doctors had been watching the gears turning in his head.

“On a ferry,” said Doctor Klara, “It’s seven-forty at night and we’re about thirty minutes from our destination, Republic City.”

Republic City. He looked up and found the two doctors watching him expectantly.

“Well? Can you remember anything? Is there anyone else we need to look out for?” Klara asked.

He remembered everything. The boat. The explosion. The burning in his lungs as he struggled towards the surface.

 “No.”

He thought about his brother, immediately dismissing the possibility of him also being alive. He’d been sitting right on top of the fuel tank. There was no way he could have made it.

He’d known it was coming. Accepted his fate the moment he heard the fuel cap being unscrewed. So why wasn’t he dead too?

“What about your name? Can you at least remember your name?” asked Noguchi.

“No,” he said again, though he could give him two names if he wanted to.

He made a move to get up, only to find Klara’s hand pushing back down on his shoulder.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to be getting up,” she said, worry in her eyes.

“I’m fine.” He swatted her hand away with his.

Or he would have, had it not been for the fact that his entire left hand was missing.

He went silent, staring at the unfamiliar stump just below his elbow. Covered in bandages. Clean bandages, he noted. Strange.

“We only just managed to staunch the bleeding. If you move around too much the wound might open up again.” Klara warned.

He used his remaining right hand to push himself up and onto his feet. Heavy bleeding was something he could easily fix himself.

Again he looked at the stump. It was strange. If it weren’t for the numb, prickly sensation that had taken over the rest of his arm, he could have sworn he could still feel his hand there.

“Why does it feel numb?” he asked colloquially.

“I had to clamp what was left of your radial and ulnar arteries,” explained Noguchi, “It was a little difficult, your arteries kept slipping back into your arm you see, so I had Doctor Klara use her bending to administer a general anaesthetic to keep your body from reacting to the pain. It’ll wear off in a couple of hours, but the hospital will have you on some strong painkillers by then, so it’s nothing to worry about.”

The numbness was in other areas of his body as well. He looked down to check if anything else was missing. Found a flimsy gown covering him up. Shrugged it off.

While nothing else was missing, there were several ragged red streaks all over his body. Most of them began on his left side, stretching across and tapering to his right.

“You’ve received burns to about forty percent of your body,” explained Doctor Klara, “The most severely affected areas are your upper torso and…”

He noticed the prickly numbness on his lips, cheeks, eyelids, and immediately understood. He rushed over to the sink in the corner of the room, bending over the basin to look into the mirror.

A craggy red mess of burnt flesh slashed diagonally through his face, from the right side of his crown to the left side of his neck. His eye brows and most of his hair had been scorched into non existence, and the majority of his upper lip had been seared right off, down to the gum line.

No hand. No face.

This was a joke right? It had to be. Some insane and elaborate prank conducted by his kid brother. Perhaps it was a dream. Just a nightmare he had to wake up from. But it wasn’t either. His hand was really gone. His face was really burnt. What the hell was he supposed to do now?

Why the fuck was he still alive?

The face of a certain teenager from the Southern Water Tribe crept into his mind. He suppressed the beginnings of a laugh.

Of course.

He looked back into mirror. Studied his repulsive new face for a moment. Then he laughed. Hysterically. He couldn’t hold it in. The irony of it all was just so funny.

“Is something the matter?” he heard the male doctor say. He sounded concerned.

He shook his head as his laughter began to die down.

**“Everything’s just perfect.”**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you don't know who the antagonist is by the end of this prologue then i have failed as a writer.
> 
> Aaaaand this is the part where I promise to release chapters as quickly as I can to motivate myself. Never really works but I'm gonna keep trying. Especially for Korrasami. Korrasamiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii. 
> 
> Oh and shoutouts to my "cool" friend moneycap- who beta'd this chap for me.
> 
> Bye for now.


	2. The Calm Before the Storm

_Five years after the opening of the Central Spirit Portal._

Asami woke to the faint smell of tea brewing. She noted a floral fragrance that was undeniably Bai Mudan tea, Korra's favourite. Glancing at her well worn Zeitling on the bedside table, her eyes widened slightly when she saw what time it was. Seven twenty-six. On a Sunday. She never woke up before ten on weekends.

The smell of peonies wafting up from the kitchen caught her attention again. She mulled over getting up; it was winter, the air was still cold and the bed was so warm, but her brain was already awake and she might as well get up. After a moment, she rolled over to the edge of the bed and sat up. She needed to go to the bathroom.

Asami had just walked out onto the indoor balcony when she heard the creaky door to the gym below the apartment open. Korra must have brewed the tea before heading back down to give Naga her breakfast and morning brushing. Asami headed towards the stairs.

The place they called home was a former Future Industries factory they'd converted into a residential building. Four storeys tall and situated right by the edge of the inner city spirit wilds, the place was central enough to meet their travel needs and big enough for a couple and their polar-bear dog to live comfortably.

They lived on the top two floors of the building, a cross between a duplex apartment and an open loft. The smaller top floor consisted of a cosy bedroom with an en suite and a walk in closet. A small balcony by the staircase overlooked the rest of the apartment.

Directly underneath the bedroom was the kitchen, which opened up into the main living area, a high ceilinged room with a wall of tall windows up one side.

Below the apartment was Korra's gym. Given all the flat, open space and the lack of furniture to bump into, it was easy to understand why Naga spent most of her time down there. Asami was in there quite a lot as well, figuring she might as well take advantage of the fact that she had the Avatar on hand as a sparring partner.

The ground floor was Asami's workshop. It was a quiet area she mostly used for sketching designs and building scale models of her projects; though it had all the equipment and space she needed to build a full size car if she wanted to. The space was often shared with Korra, who claimed the ambience helped her meditate; though most of the time she just lounged about on Asami's "thinking couch" and quietly watched her work.

Asami was melting butter in a pan to start on the pancakes when she heard the apartment door behind the staircase swing open. She felt rather than heard someone walk up behind her and she didn't need to see to know who.

"Good morning, you," said that familiar mellow voice, while a pair of toned brown arms wrapped themselves around her waist.

"Morning Korra," she greeted fondly before gently holding the arms around her waist. In response they pulled her back and squeezed her in a tight hug.

"You're up early," Korra remarked from behind her. "Did Naga wake you up? She was a little restless this morning…"

"No, it wasn't her," Asami reassured. "I think it was the tea. Speaking of which, I kinda stole some of yours. Hope you don't mind."

"…Oh shoot! I forgot about the tea! Ugh. It's gonna be so bitter."

"Relax," she said, giving Korra's arm a squeeze, "I took out the infuser when I came down. I know you like it a little weak."

Korra let out a thankful sigh of relief. "I am so glad you married me."

Asami just smiled.

For a minute, all they did was stand quietly together in front of the stove. Asami closed her eyes, savouring the warmth and the feeling of Korra pressed up against her back. When she opened them again she saw that she'd been absentmindedly drawing circles with her thumb on Korra's forearm.

Korra's head nudged her gently between the shoulder blades.

_I love you too._

Feeling Korra's arms relax around her waist, Asami knew what she had in mind. With her free hand, she discreetly turned off the stove before Korra turned her around. They were both leaning in for a kiss when Asami remembered something. She peeled away to avoid her wife's incoming lips and put a hand over her mouth.

Korra cocked her head to one side.

"Morning breath," she explained through a covered mouth. "I still haven't brushed yet."

Korra rolled her eyes. She took Asami by the shoulders, placed a hand on the back of her neck and looked into her eyes. With careless shrug and a lopsided smile she said, "Doesn't bother me." And kissed her. And Asami kissed back.

"You are so gross," she laughed, breaking the kiss momentarily before pulling Korra back and locking lips with her once again.

Asami loved how familiar it all felt. They knew exactly how they fit together. Korra's strong arms around her shoulders and neck. Her hands on Korra's hips and lower back. The weight of Korra's lips pressed against hers.

This was home. This was right.

This was how things were supposed to be.

 

* * *

***

* * *

 

Korra was halfway through her tenth pancake when the phone in the living room started ringing. She thought it strange for someone to be calling their household so early on a Sunday morning. Nevertheless, she got up to answer it, hurriedly gulping down what was still in her mouth before picking up the clunky receiver by the couch.

"Hello, Korra Sato speaking." She couldn't help but let out a small grin. Two years in and she still got a kick out of saying it.

"Oh, Avatar Korra."

She recognized the voice as belonging to Asami's personal assistant.

"Hey Yasmin. I take it you wanna speak with Asami?"

"Yes that's correct."

"Hold on a sec, I'll get her for you."

Korra waved Asami over and mouthed "Yasmin," to her before handing the phone over. She headed back to the dining table.

She stuffed the last of her pancake into her mouth, chasing it down with a chug of milk as she began flicking through the newspaper. Asami was quiet on the couch by the phone.

Today's paper was pretty interesting. There was an amusing, heart-warming article about how a man's poodle-monkey had saved him by pulling him out of his burning house. Her thoughts drifted towards Naga downstairs, and she smiled.

Korra was skimming through a section on Biff Newport, Asami's main business rival, and his plans to "revolutionize" law enforcement with his soon to be revealed product line, when she heard the clack of the phone being hung up.

Asami hadn't moved from the telephone. She was just sitting there hunched over, elbows to knees, staring down into a pit of her own making.

"Is everything okay?" Korra said as she stood up.

She barely managed to catch the slightest shake of Asami's head. She rushed over and sat on the couch next to her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Asami what's wrong? What happened?"

Asami didn't answer. Korra didn't prod her for one, trusting she'd talk once she was ready.

Asami was still looking blankly at the floor when she eventually said, "An entire shipment of platinum was stolen from the main factory last night."

But Korra knew that wasn't the worst of it.

Asami quietly sat up and faced Korra, letting out a calming breath before finally parting her lips to speak.

**"Two people were found dead."**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some fluff before shit gets real.
> 
> Given that this fic is gonna be Asami-centric, for the most part i'll be writing it from a "looking over Asami's shoulder" perspective. But from time to time i'll switch it up like i did with korra in this chapter.
> 
> For those of you who arent big on timepieces, Zeitling = Breitling. Specifically the Navitimer QP. I know, I know, its a modern design that couldn't have existed in the 20's. But seriously look at that red gold and black leather. So Asami. And it happens to be a pilots watch, which Asami is. Sometimes.
> 
> Its also really fucking expensive.
> 
> 73 THOUSAND DOLLARY FUCKING DOOS.
> 
> But thats okay Asami's got the cash for it.
> 
> Oh aaaaand for the previous chapter, Seita = Seiko.
> 
> Thanks again to moneycap, this time for beta-ing AND letting me use her fanart as the cover. And thankyou for all the kudos and bookmarks. Its always nice knowing your work is appreciated :)
> 
> Bye for now.


	3. Comrades

Asami peered at her reflection in the mirror and let out a frustrated sigh.

_Today of all days._

She’d done it perfectly a million times before. Why couldn’t she do it now? She reached down for another wipe.

“Asami, you’ve redone your lipstick seven times already,” Korra said firmly from the doorway of their bathroom.

“I know, I know. I just- I can’t get it to look right,” she sighed as she brought the wipe up to her face.

Korra quickly stepped into the bathroom and caught her by the wrist. “You look fine,” she reassured.

Asami looked at herself again. She supposed it did look okay.

Korra let go of her wrist and Asami relaxed her arm, only then realizing how tense she had been. She threw the unused wipe into the waste basket and looked down into the sink.

“I’m sorry. This thing’s got me all stressed out. You know that I’m not great at dealing with… this sort of thing.” she said.

“It’s okay. And you can get through this,” Korra encouraged. "We’ll get through this, just like last time."

The memories of countless nights spent crying into Korra’s chest flashed through her mind. Only a few years had passed since then, but it felt like a lifetime ago.

She nodded. Korra kissed her lightly on the shoulder before heading back out into their bedroom.

Korra was right. Dealing with death's aftermath would always be difficult, especially for her. But she was capable of handling it.

Asami recapped the lipstick and began putting away her cosmetics.

“You ready?” Korra asked as she stepped out of the bathroom.

“As I’ll ever be,” she replied.

 “Let's get going then," Korra said with a consoling smile as she hoisted Naga’s saddle over her shoulder.

Asami couldn't help but smile back.

With Korra by her side, she could handle anything.

 

* * *

***

* * *

 

It took around thirty minutes for them to reach the industrial area in the city's south.  They could've made it in twenty had they taken the car, but Korra had anticipated that Naga's tracking abilities would be useful with the investigation. Naga slowed to an amble as the iconic chimneys of Future Industries largest manufacturing complex came into view.  

"These people that were killed. You know them?" Korra asked, turning around.

 Asami nodded. She'd recognized their names immediately. "One of them was Junseo," she said mournfully.  

"Wait, Choi Junseo? That mean lookin' guy you introduced me to last week?"

"From the fortieth corporate anniversary evening? Yeah that was him. He was my Director of Operations," Asami confirmed.

She allowed herself a small rueful smile. Although his unrelenting seriousness and intimidating demeanor were often offputting to those who encountered him, it was those exact traits that made Choi Junseo so damn good at his job. And he was actually quite the gentleman past that tough exterior. His presence would be greatly missed.

"What about the other person?" Korra queried.

Asami let out a breath and closed her eyes in sorrow. "The other person, she was one of the fifty-three..."

Korra said nothing, simply nodding in understanding.

Fifty-three. That was the number of employees that had chosen not to resign after her father's sentencing all those years ago. From a workforce of over a thousand people, only they decided to stay. It was because of those fifty-three that Asami was able to rebuild and transform Future Industries into the successful conglomerate it now was.

Asami had made it her own duty to know each one of them personally. It was the least she could do.

Tikaani Karan was one of them.

A former member of the United Forces, she had all the qualities and skills required to be Asami's head of Security. Tikaani always took it upon herself to escort Asami out to her car whenever she worked late.

She was also the single mother of two teenagers.

All those raises Asami had given Tikaani would longer be sufficient. She made a silent vow to ensure her two boys would be well looked after.

"We can walk from here Naga," Korra said once the main entrance came into view. Naga lowered herself to let the two of them off.

"You did good getting us here girl. Thankyou," Korra praised, placing a treat in Naga's mouth.

Asami was patting Naga her thanks when a security guard came running toward them from his post at the security gate ahead.

“Ms. Sato, Avatar Korra,” he addressed them with a bow of the head.

“What’s the situation?” Asami demanded.

"If you follow me I can explain on the way, Ma’am,” the guard said. She nodded and they fell into step alongside him.

When the four of them arrived at the security checkpoint, Asami saw that one of the boom gates had been completely destroyed. The whole area was circled with black and gold police tape. Her brows furrowed.

“Republic City’s Homicide Unit arrived about an hour ago," the guard said as they passed through the undamaged gate. "Chief Beifong arrived shortly after. Says she’ll personally see to it that the perpetrator is caught as soon as possible."

Asami nodded, grateful to have known the Chief for so long.

They entered the parking lot and Asami noted the thick black lines printed onto the brown asphalt. Skid marks. She didn’t need to be a detective to know they ended up at the carnage she’d seen just moments before. As she traced them through, she saw that they pointed in the direction of the warehouses beside the factory.

The grounds just outside the warehouses were crowded with people, at least fifty of them; some dressed in hooded white coveralls, gloves and boots, others wore the standard grey police uniform. Those with coveralls were armed with cameras, rushing in and out of the pair of vinyl tents that had been pitched for the investigation. The tent closest to them was police black, and the one by the warehouse entrance was army green.

Wait. Army green?

"The Military Police are also here," the gaurd said, reading her thoughts. "Beifong got a little crabby when they announced that they'd be taking over the investigation of... Chief Karan, which makes sense I suppose, given her history in the service. Seemed to calm down once she met their guy in charge though."

Asami's head cocked to one side.

"Does this 'guy in charge' have a name?" asked Korra, also curious.

"Sorry, I couldn't catch it Ma'am," he apologized, "He's pretty young for the Brass though. Probably not much older than yourselves. Fire Nation heritage by the looks of him."

Asami and Korra glanced knowingly at each other as they approached the scene. It didn't take long for their suspicion to be confirmed when a familiar, tall, broad shouldered figure stepped out from behind the drab olive tent.

Mako.

Lin stepped out a moment later, followed shortly by an older man and young woman they didn’t know. They all appeared to be in deep conversation.

Mako was dressed like a mature version of his teen self. While the palette was different, he’d brought back his old silhouette with a canvas trench coat, grey pinstripe slacks and brown leather dress shoes. That trademark scarf had been replaced with a white dress shirt and a slim red tie, and his gloves were no longer fingerless. 

Asami smiled her approval at his "new" classic look. It had been too long since they'd last seen him out of uniform.

Despite Kuvira's public declaration of surrender all those years ago, a fair number of her followers had refused believe her. They claimed she'd been forced to do it, even going as far as spreading a false conspiracy that Kuvira was being controlled by a blood bender hired by the United Republic. That was made all the worse by the fact that they were supported by the last remnants of the Dai Li, as well as the majority of Upper Ring citizens, who feared another violent insurrection from the Lower Rings after hearing Prince Wu's plans to abolish the Monarchy.

In just weeks, Ba Sing Se had become a war zone, with Kuvira's fanatics wreaking havoc amongst the Middle and Lower Rings, demanding their leader be released. After hearing that their Grandmother's old home had been destroyed, both Mako and Bolin had signed up for the service. Thankfully the conflict was resolved in a matter of months with minimal casualties, and Bolin carried out the rest of his one year military contract in relative peace, before returning to civilian life. Mako on the other hand stayed on to serve as part of the Military Police. It was there that he’d flourished, quickly rising through the ranks to become the youngest Major in the entire United Forces.

Naga woofed loudly, excited to see an old friend again, and everyone on site looked in their direction. Mako flashed a rare grin when he saw them.

The group of detectives made their way towards them, Mako leading the way. The security guard took it as his cue to leave and Asami saw him off with a nod.

"Korra, 'Sami," Mako greeted in his usual stoic manner, as if it hadn't been more than a year since they'd last seen other.

Asami rolled her eyes at him.

"It's nice to see you're still as affectionate as always," Korra laughed.

Asami stepped in and hugged him. "Good to see you Mako. It's been too long."

Korra joined in a second later, inciting a yelp of pain from the young Major less accustomed to her strong hugs.

"Suck it up soldier," Korra teased, before he could complain.

They didn't realize how long they'd been hugging until someone behind Mako coughed.

"Sir."

Mako broke off the hug and turned around.

It was the young woman whose name they didn't know.

Like Mako, she too was dressed as a civilian, in an all black outfit consisting of a hooded jacket, heavily pocketed cargo pants and a pair of combat boots. There was a hard look in her moss green eyes.

"What is it Lieutenant?" Mako said, a little miffed.

"Just thought I should remind you that General Iroh will be arriving shortly. Sir."

Mako's expression turned serious.

"Let's save the catching up for later, shall we?” he said turning towards them.

Asami took a step back and observed the mayhem happening around her- the grave circumstances that had brought them together again in the first place.

She closed her eyes, letting the faces of her fallen comrades fill her mind, and nodded her agreement.

"Yeah. Let's do this."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter I wanted to introduce the vitims as well as the support characters. Notice the lack of Bolin? Yeah sorry, it's like that for a reason. It's not that I don't like him- I love Bo. But overall I don't think he meshes quite well with this story. I'll try and write him in when i can though. And his wife opal. Gotta keep the Krew together somehow.
> 
> "Korra, 'Sami." Mako ships it too.
> 
> The idea to make him Military Police was inspired by the Jack Reacher novels. At first i was gonna make him the new Chief of Police, but i didn't wanna retire Chief B just yet.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Bye for now.


	4. Off the Books

"I want to see the bodies."

Lin Beifong's head jerked up from the reports on the desk to find Sato standing in the rear entrance of the mobile command vehicle. She was dressed fashionably as always in a thick duffle coat, knee length skirt and wool stockings. Beifong tried not to grimace as she estimated how much it all cost.

She adjusted her reading glasses and returned her attention to the document she'd been studying, picking it up from desk as to keep Sato in her peripheral vision. 

"You can see them once the coroner is done with them," she quipped.

Somehow, in spite of all the bulky recording and communications equipment taking up most of the space, the metallic clunking of Sato's boots against the floor still managed to echo faintly throughout the vehicle's interior as she made her way towards the desk.

"I want to see them now," Sato demanded, folding her arms as she leaned back against the side panel of the main radio unit, "And I want in on the investigation. Unrestricted access to everything your people find," 

Lin continued to read as she quietly assessed the young CEO in the corner of her vison. There was a tension in her that she couldn't help but notice. An edginess she recognized of old. 

But that was no reason for Lin to give in. As influential as she was, Sato was still a civilian; and a murder investigation was no civilian affair. 

"No," she dismissed coolly as she flipped over to the next page.

"Please Lin. Can't you pull some strings for an old friend?"

When Lin continued to read silently, Sato trudged over to her desk. She dragged the chair opposite Lin's out from under the desk, letting it scrape noisily against the diamond plate flooring. Letting herself fall into it, she leaned back, crossing her legs and folding her arms as she waited for Lin to respond.

Lin rolled her eyes discreetly before finally setting the report back down. 

"If we're such good friends then why can't you trust my officers to find out whoever's behind all this?"

"It's not that I don't trust you. I just- I can't sit by on the sidelines when I know their killers are out there running free. Not when I know that I can help."

"Well you can help by letting my people go about their work unhindered,"

Sato shot her a dangerous look.

Lin met it evenly as she leaned forward, tossing her reading glasses onto the desk. 

"Look Sato, I know what you're feeling right now," Lin empathized, remembering how helpless and frustrated she'd felt that time she'd lost an undercover officer to Zolt.

"But I can't just let a civilian in on a police investigation. It goes against all our professional policies. Surely you of all people would understand the importance of that."

"Just keep it off the books then." 

Lin shot her a glare of her own.

"You know I'm good for it Lin," Asami pressed on, "Remember the Cabbage Corp incident?" 

"That was a onetime deal Sato. I thought I made that clear," Lin snapped. 

Sato said nothing. 

"Look, I admit we wouldn't have been able to solve that case if it weren’t for you," Lin said, dropping her voice, "but corporate fraud and murder are two very different crimes."

"I can handle it," Sato said defiantly. 

"Oh really now?" Lin challenged.

The slight falter in the younger woman's gaze betrayed the sliver of doubt buried deep underneath that confident exterior. Lin needed to keep pushing her. Sure, it was possible that she was all wrong and Sato could work through the investigation without a hitch. But there was also the risk that she'd end up doing herself more harm than good. And that was a risk Lin wasn't willing to take.

"I'm not going to let you subject yourself to that kind of stress Asami, not after seeing the state you were in after your father's passing."

"She can handle it," a commanding voice cut her off.

Shit.

Lin looked around Sato to see Avatar Korra standing in the truck's rear entrance. Edmar Yang, the head of Republic City's Homicide Unit was standing alongside her. Lin watched as the two of them entered the vehicle. 

"She can handle it," Korra repeated, gently this time, as she walked up and put a hand on Asami’s shoulder. The concerned look in her blue eyes was as plain as day, but still, she continued to vouch for her wife. "I know Asami better than anyone, which is why I know that she's gotten stronger since then," Korra paused to look Lin directly in the eyes, “It’ll be different this time around." 

It was Lin's turn to stand her ground in silence.

"Let me into the tents too," Korra suggested, "I'll keep an eye out for her, make sure she's okay. The second I think things are going South, I'll get her out." 

Lin took a moment to consider her this. Korra had a point in knowing Asami much better than she did. And no one cared about Asami more than Korra did. 

“You're the one leading the investigation Yang. What do you think?” she turned towards the middle-aged plain clothes officer standing next to Korra. 

“Won't bother me Chief," Yang began with that obscure accent of his, "And if what ye said about Mrs. Sato being the one to crack that impossible case is true, then I'd be more than happy to hear her take on things." 

Lin pursed her lips, sucking in a deep breath through her nostrils. 

"Fine. But I can only guarantee the viewing of Choi Junseo’s body. You'll have to ask Mako if you want to see Karan's," she agreed reluctantly. "Also, I want the both of you to attend separate debriefing sessions with a counselor tomorrow morning at police headquarters. Understood?" 

The couple glanced at each other before nodding. 

"Good. Now is there something that you needed, Inspector Yang?" she asked, turning to the fifty-six year old. 

Despite his obscure accent and, at times, strange sense of humour, people never questioned Lin's decision to appoint Inspector Edmar Yang as the head of RCHU. From the greying hair and crow’s feet circling his green eyes, to the color faded suit wrinkled from years of use, everything about the man exuded one thing- Experience. 

"Aye," he said, removing the brown fedora from his head. "Avatar Korra and I just came to inform you of the crowd of reporters that's formed at the front gate. They're getting quite rowdy, Chief." 

Lin gave a sigh of indignation. "Alright. I'll deal with the press for now while Inspector Yang gives you two the lowdown." 

"Thankyou Lin. Really, thankyou," Sato said, sounding both grateful and relieved. 

"No need for that Sato. Just don't make me regret this decision," she replied sternly.

They shook hands, sealing the deal. 

"Now get out of here before I change my mind."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes its been a while I know. 
> 
> Next chapter should be up soon.


End file.
